IUCN threat status:

Brief Summary

Biology

This turtle appears to be nocturnal, spending much of the day underwater burrowed into gravel deposits or hidden in rock crevices, generally at the stream edge or behind a waterfall (2) (4). At night, individuals emerge to search for food along the stream's bottom, and sometimes also out of the water along the stream's edge (4). Big-headed turtles are accomplished climbers, but not so well-equipped for swimming, with the ability to cling to rocks being more advantageous than swimming in the rapid waters in which it lives (2) (4). The diet is almost entirely carnivorous, with the species' strong, bony jaws allowing it to feed on crustaceans and molluscs, which form a large portion of the diet (4). The reproductive biology of big-headed turtles is almost completely unknown (6). A clutch reportedly contains one to six eggs, although two to three are more normal (2).